


The Twin Princes of Erebor

by Stasia



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Book canon compliant, Gen, canon compliant deaths, frerin and thorin are brothers, one small change, what if
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-05
Updated: 2014-07-05
Packaged: 2018-02-07 15:24:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1904067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stasia/pseuds/Stasia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Who survives a battle is always a matter of luck.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Twin Princes of Erebor

They were called the Twin Princes of Erebor; as alike as two gems cut from the same stone. Visiting dignitaries from other kingdoms often assumed they were true birth twins; the very closest Erebor had come to war with Dale was when they switched places and Frerin inadvertently implied that Girion's daughter was a troll. Luckily for the entirety of the North, Princess Talla had a sense of humor. 

Those who knew them better could tell one prince from the other by their demeanor; while they were both prone to lighthearted pranks, Thorin was, underneath the laughter, more solemn and reflective than his younger brother. His temperament was less placid as well – Thorin could be counted on to have at least one shouting rage every week, while Frerin was nearly impossible to anger. Often it was one of Frerin's pranks which drove Thorin to fury; Frerin balanced his ability to anger his brother by being the one who could calm him most easily.

In lessons, Thorin followed carefully, while Frerin, aware of his status as the younger, "spare", brother, was much less studious. They were well matched in the training rooms, though Frerin excelled at swordwork while Thorin chose archery. He endured his brother's teasing with his usual barely leashed temper.

The best way to tell them apart was by looking at their eyes - Frerin's light blue eyes were usually filled with mirth while Thorin's dark brown eyes always held some suspicion, no matter what the situation. 

This caused some amusement in the Royal Family when they sat for their first Official Portrait; the two tall dark princes bracketing the youngest sibling, their Golden Princess Dis; she sat upon a small golden throne so laden with gems that the yellow color – the metal perfectly matching her hair – nearly didn't show. The artist rendered everything perfectly, but due to his inability to tell one Prince from another, he painted Frerin in the regalia of the Crown Prince instead of Thorin.

Frerin had found this intensely amusing and tried to insist that Thorin bow to him. The half-year battle of pranks and mischief this led to caused stoppages in three of the silver mines and nearly collapsed one of the sapphire mines. Only Dis' amusement and support prevented Thrain from disinheriting them both. That and Frerin's often stated and well-known lack of desire to actually sit on the throne himself. 

All this stopped, of course, when the dragon came.

The brothers remained inseparable, tall buttresses for their young sister, all three taking lessons and learning crafts as they and their people wandered Dunland. Frerin's blue eyes were harder and Thorin's often darker than night by the time their grandfather and King left to attempt the reclamation of Khazad Dum, and both lost more of their youthful innocence as the War of the Dwarves and Orcs grew over the decade following Thror's murder by the Orcs of Khazad-Dum.

The great battle came, and the brothers, the Twins fought back to back as they had ever done. The battle swirled around them, bringing enemy and friend past in confusing shifts. Eventually, the heat and press of battle drew them apart and although they struggled to stay together, they lost sight of each other.

* * *

Balin turned, looking over the terrible destruction. He saw brothers mourning, howling in anguish, while others grimly turned body after body, leaving them neatly arranged and composed for those who still hadn't found their family and loved ones. He knew he was lucky – while slightly injured, he still had his brother.

He searched for someone else, now. With Thror dead these nine years, murdered by orcs here on this very battleground and with Thrain gone, run screaming off into surrounding countryside, he needed to find the Princes. Balin strode carefully, placing each foot with caution; the ground was uneven and treacherous and he didn't know if he could rise again if he fell.

His eye was caught by something near where he'd last seen the Princes fighting. Someone bent over another person; the small movements of his shoulders seemed almost too gentle for such a profane scene as this battlefield. Balin approached slowly, but sped when he saw the Royal insignia on the backplate of the armor of the crouching Dwarf. 

"My Lord," he said, coming around to face them. His face crumpled at what he saw. One brother lay on the ground, his hair impossibly fouled with mud and gore, his breastplate so caved in it was clear he'd not survived the first strike. The cuts and other damage were negligible in the face of that crushed chest. "Oh lad," Balin whispered, falling to his knees, "oh my poor laddie." He reached forward and untangled the Prince's long braids from where they'd caught on his armor, shifting aside a piece of old wood that was propped over the Prince's shoulder.

He sighed deeply, feeling as if he were older than the mountains themselves. "My Lord," he began again. "Are you injured? Shall I bring you to the healers?" The bent figure straightened, opening his eyes. First he looked at his brother, then at Balin, who bowed as deeply as he could and said, "Fre – "

"Frerin is _dead_ ," snarled the Prince. "My brother, my beloved brother is dead, my grandfather slain and my father gone. I and Dis are all that is left." 

Balin looked into the icy blue eyes before him and bent to the ground, pressing his face to his knees.

"Your Majesty," he intoned, "King Thorin, King Under the Mountain."

**Author's Note:**

> I know this is against all of fanon, but in canon Frerin's looks aren't mentioned at all. I thought it might be interesting if who we think we know is, in fact, someone different all along.
> 
> Also, in the books, Thror was killed long before the Battle of Azanulbizar. I used this timeline [Thorin at Middle Earth Encyclopedia](http://middle-earthencyclopedia.weebly.com/thorin-oakenshield.html) (which is more compactly presented [here](http://askmiddlearth.tumblr.com/post/73506619252/thorin-oakenshields-timeline-according-to-the-books)) as the basis for the timing in this story.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [The Twin Princes of Erebor - podfic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/4669265) by [Stasia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stasia/pseuds/Stasia)




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